


UNDERTALE Soundtrack

by The_Sarcasm_Fairy



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Music, Undertale Spoilers, if saving can be acknowledge in universe why can't music
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-17
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-12-16 14:35:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11830770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Sarcasm_Fairy/pseuds/The_Sarcasm_Fairy
Summary: When you fall into the Underground, you don't notice the music right away.





	UNDERTALE Soundtrack

When you fall into the Underground, you don’t notice the music right away. At first, you’re too focused on the throbbing in your hands and knees, and the pounding in your head from the rapid change in pressure from falling so far down. Then, you’re being accosted by a talking flower with a face, and you’re so busy dodging “friendliness pellets” that you don’t notice the high-pitched beat that’s in time with your headache.

And then she is there, many times larger than the flower that almost killed you, and she has horns and fangs, but her voice is gentle and she takes your hand in hers and guides you through a sea of spikes without a scratch, and teaches you about puzzles, and so even as your headache recedes and the aches in your joints go away, you’re so distracted that you don’t notice anything out of the ordinary.

And then she leaves you in a long, narrow hallway, and it’s the first time you’ve been alone down here since you stumbled out of the cavern with the golden flowers and you won’t admit it but you are terrified of her and of this place and of the flower that smiled at you and then tried to kill you for no reason other than that you were there. And it’s then, staring down the hall, that you hear it for the first time. At first you think it’s another monster here to kill you, but nothing jumps out at you.  You stand frozen for a long time, until you realize what it is.

You can’t tell where the music is coming from, or what it is really, and this is what makes you start moving. You walk with measured and careful steps, watching for the source of the music or for traps or puzzles to be sprung. You’re watching so carefully, listening so closely, that you almost jump out of your skin when Toriel jumps out from the pillar at the end of the hall. The music cuts off as quickly as it started, and is replaced with the soft sounds of piano. You hardly hear what Toriel says to you, but you clutch the cell phone she hands you and call her as soon as she is gone. But she sounds distracted, and you can’t stand here and listen to phantom piano music forever.

You don’t know where it’s coming from, and you don’t know where you are going. But you figure if you walk far enough, you might figure it out eventually.

 

* * *

 

 

You are afraid. You are shivering, and the trees are so tall you can’t see their tops, and there is someone following you down the wooded path. But what scares you the most is the silence. Since you stepped through the heavy door of the ruins, there has been nothing but the crunch of snow under your feet and the wind whipping through the branches overhead. You long for the music you left behind in the warm, echoing caverns: the absurd little ditty of the crying ghost; the soft chords that carried you off to sleep in Toriel’s home; even the fast-paced,  heart-wrenching song that accompanied the steel in Toriel’s eyes and the burning of her magic. You are afraid of the silence, and of the cracking of the heavy branch behind you, and of the voice that tells you to turn around.

And his smile is wide and absurd, the whoopee cushion clasped between your hands startling you. He starts laughing, and just like that the music is back. All of the tension in your body leaves at once and you start laughing too, because this is his music, you know it is, and it is laid-back and jovial, and you feel yourself bobbing your head to it without meaning to.

He says his name is sans, and you think that sounds just right for his music. Short and curt, but funny. You have never felt so relieved to hear something in your life.

 

* * *

 

 

The other skeleton is different, and his music is as well. You watch him from behind the conveniently-shaped lamp, and for a second you are apprehensive. This skeleton is tall and loud, and he speaks of capturing you with a determination that scares you. But the longer you watch the two brothers interact, the harder you listen in, the more you see. You see the similarities his song has to his brother’s, the upbeat tune that is silly and melodious all in one. You see the childishness in his determination, the affection in his scolding. And when he laughs, loud and unreserved, you cover your mouth and laugh with him.

You decide that you like Papyrus.

 

* * *

 

You sit with your back to the mysterious door that won’t open, watching the bioluminescent mushrooms blinking their lights on and off. It is dark in this little cavern, and the chil from outside does not reach here. You are being lulled to sleep, in this dark, mysterious place. A gentle lullaby that is not quite music plays here, a quiet respite from the light and the noise outside. You lean back against the door, pulling your knees to your chest, and think to yourself that you will only rest here for a little while.

 

* * *

 

 

Papyrus’s blue attacks fly straight for you and you do not flinch. They tingle when they pass through your body. The drum beats of his music are louder in battle, and the world around the two of you no longer exists. His music pauses, and you feel your soul grow heavy and you stumble, struggling to stay on your feet. You look up at him questioningly, and he grins. Well, he’s always grinning, but you think he seems proud of himself. He did catch you off guard, certainly. You grin back, pulling yourself up to your full height that does not even reach his chest, and you Spare him. And you Spare him. And you keep Sparing him, even as you are knocked to the ground and smacked in the stomach and shove oversized cinnamon buns into your mouth. He does not really want to kill you, and you will not kill him, and so you use your toy knife for nothing but swatting away bones that sneak up on you.

You sway to the music, and you jump over bones, and you Spare Papyrus. His music, so similar to before yet so different now, buoys your spirit. You know this skeleton. And you know he will not hurt you.  

 

* * *

 

 

The music in Waterfall reminds you of a music box you got for your birthday many years ago. It is familiar, and haunting, and you have never heard it before in your life. It rises and falls with the wishes of the echo flowers and the sound of rushing water, and you fall to your knees in the seagrass and clutch a pair of dusty red ballet shoes to your chest. They are too big for you, but you wear them anyway, and you blame the moisture in the air for the condensation on your cheeks. You have never heard this song before, and you know it by heart. It is about wishes, and wishes that do not come true, and wishes that are never heard. And for the first time since before falling onto a bed of golden flowers, you are angry.

 

* * *

 

 

The tiny yellow bird has a firm grip of your hair, and you swing your feet over the small gap. The bird chirps, and you smile widely. The music swells, and you cheer it on.

 

* * *

 

 

You don’t stay in Temmie Village for very long. The music makes your head hurt.

 

* * *

 

 

Undyne’s is the first music that makes you stop in surprise. It sounds like something out of an impossibly difficult arcade game, or an awesome action movie that you aren’t old enough to watch. It is not the music you expected her to have. It is nothing like the sinister drum beats you heard from her earlier, or the wild, choppy song of the dummy outside her house. It is not anything like Papyrus’, or sans’. It is epic. It is the music you would expect a hero to have.

She tosses a spear at you, and you catch it. Your feet are rooted to the spot, red-stained ballet shoes and all. You think about the anger you felt in Waterfall, clutching the last remnants of another human being who never made it out of here. You wonder if they ever heard this song. You wonder, for the first time, if the monsters can hear their own songs. No one has mentioned it. You wonder if you are going crazy.

You look up at Undyne. Her armor is glinting, her psychotic grin wide and toothy. She refused to fight the monster kid that stood up to her. She taught Papyrus how to fight. She is the hero of the Underground.

Undyne lobs attacks at you, and you stay rooted to the spot. The music slows a fraction, and you wince as you feel your soul weaken.

Her next attack is slower. The next is slower still. Finally she yells at you to block with the spear she threw at you. You look at her blankly. She curses at you, raving something about stupid humans. Slowly, you start to smile.

Her attacks approach you at a crawl, and you knock them away with your spear. The music returns in full force, and Undyne howls at you about justice and truth and the dreams of monsters.

You smile up at her. And you Spare her.

 

* * *

 

 

Alphys’ music is cute, relaxing, and you smile encouragingly at her when she stutters. Her shoulders are hunched up to her ears, her feet shuffling nervously beneath the hem of her stained lab coat. She tells you she has been watching you, and you nod. She tells you about her wish to help you, and you grin. She tells you about the killer robot, and her music stops.

 

* * *

 

 

You’ve never been on TV before, and you’ve never even watched a quiz show. But with Alphys helping you with answers, it isn’t that difficult. You concentrate on dodging Mettaton’s ridiculous attacks, but most of all you find yourself listening to his music. Halfway through the battle, when you reach a question without a time limit and have a second to catch your breath, you bob along in time to the music, staying on your toes. Mettaton . . . well, you’d say he looks pleased that you’re enjoying yourself, but he is the first robot you’ve ever met and you don’t want to presume how to read his emotions. You jump back into the fight and giggle when Alphys blushes when you guess her crush correctly, and you shimmy your hips in time with the beat. Before Mettaton leaves, you catch him doing the same, and you wonder exactly why Alphys programmed a killer robot to be so flamboyant.

 

* * *

 

 

You sit with sans in the MTT Resort restaurant, the music faint in the background, and you sway in your seat slightly. You need to rest soon, collect yourself and find your determination to keep moving, but sans is saying something and you really should be listening. You wish that his music would play instead of whatever this is that’s putting you to sleep, and you play with your napkin, folding it into different shapes to keep your hands busy. You laugh at the story he’s telling you, but the pit in your stomach grows when he tells you his promise. Your hand goes to the cell phone in your pocket, and you think of Toriel. But sans is silly, and you are tired, and you must be misunderstanding him. You wish his music would play, to remind you of his character. You wish he would tell another knock-knock joke, or wink at you. You wish the music would stop.

The music stops. The lights flicker. The whites of sans’ eyes disappear. His voice is hard, lazy drawl vanished. You scream. You fall out of your seat.

The restaurant comes back into focus. Piano music plays in the back of your head. Sans chuckles, eyes and voice returned to normal, and you are still in your seat. Your hands are clenched around your torn napkin.

Your head is pounding and sans leaves without paying for the meal you were never served. You stare at the table for a long time, then stand and walk out slowly. For the first time in a long while, you are scared. But you feel something else as well, remembering sans’ blank eyes.

You feel determination.

 

* * *

 

 

Asgore’s home is empty. You walk through the empty halls, breath in the scent of must and dirt that exists only in the house of someone who lives alone, and spends all their time away to avoid that fact. You listen to the monsters who come to you, telling you their story. You listen, and you trail your hand over the striped shirts inside the dresser in the kid’s room. You listen, and the music lifts up your spirit and takes away your hope. You’ve come all this way. You’ve done so many things. Spared so many. Your fists clench around the worn dagger in your hand. The heart locket is heavy around your neck.

You want to go home. You want to see the sky, feel the warmth of the sun. You think of Undyne, and her aggressive affection for all monster-kind. You think of Papyrus, and his refusal to harm anyone. You think of sans, and his distant smile and vacant eyes. You think of music boxes. You think of your friends.

You feel a hand on your shoulder, and you look up into the red eyes of a smiling human in a striped shirt. You think of being left in the ruins, and the choking fear in that long hallway. You think of being followed in the woods outside Snowdin. You think of red-stained ballet shoes. You think of the spider woman, and the killer robot, and the lying scientist.

You think of yourself.

The red-eyed human smiles at you. You cannot hear the music anymore.

 

* * *

 

 

You remember the first time you heard sans’ music. You remember the overwhelming relief you felt, the sense that everything would be all right after all. You remember Papyrus’s laugh, and Toriel’s arms wrapped around you, and the monster kid defending you, and Undyne smashing a pot full of spaghetti with a spear.

You smile. You take a single step forward.

“welp. sorry, old lady.”

The room darkens. Sans shrugs.

“this is why i never make promises.”

This, you think, is your favorite of the music you have heard so far. You can’t wait to hear how it ends.

**Author's Note:**

> Songs referenced are, in order: Unnecessary Tension, sans., Nyeh Heh Heh!, Mysterious Place, Bonetrousle, Waterfall, Bird That Carries You Over A Disproportionately Small Gap, Temmie Village, Spear of Justice, Alphys, Metal Crusher, It's Raining Somewhere Else, Undertale, and of course, MEGALOVANIA.
> 
> This started with an idea about the tempo of a monster's theme music corresponding to how powerful they are (like how "sans." is really slow, but Megalovania is insane), and spiraled so out of control that I didn't end up including that idea at all. Mostly I just wanted to write about someone appreciating this game's amazing soundtrack. Hope you enjoyed!


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